By Avinash P and Purvi Agarwal
Aug 19 (Reuters) – The main U.S. stock indexes were on track to open higher on Wednesday after a tech-led selloff in the previous session as investors assessed fresh retailer results, while Moderna’s shares skyrocketed following successful vaccine trial results.
Moderna’s stock vaulted more than 94% in premarket trading after interim results showed its vaccine combined with Merck’s Keytruda met both primary goals in a late-stage trial. Merck jumped 6.6%.
Biotech peers also gained: Novavax was up 5.8% while U.S.-listed shares of BioNTech rallied 15.7%.
Meanwhile, Target inched 0.5% higher after raising its annual sales forecast as its turnaround efforts bore fruit.
Lowe’s dropped 2.3% after saying it now expects no growth in annual comparable sales as consumers remained cautious on discretionary spending.
“Maybe the street wanted a little bit more from them. It’s not the greatest environment for retail, but you’re not necessarily buying the stocks for right now. You’re buying for what you hopefully expect to go on in the future,” said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth.
Retail bellwether Walmart is due to report quarterly earnings on Thursday.
At 08:43 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis rose 241 points, or 0.45%, S&P 500 E-minis added 24 points, or 0.31%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis gained 84 points, or 0.28%.
Yields on global government bonds hit multi-decade highs on Tuesday as concerns over ballooning government debt and geopolitics battered the bond market, complicating the policy path.
The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond held steady at 5.197%, holding close to its highest level since 2007. The benchmark 10-year maturity retreated from its highest level since January 2025.
“A prolonged war means pressure on inflation via energy prices at a time when the Fed’s policy outlook and its reaction function to inflation are no longer straightforward,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
“Something must give: either yields will come lower – if Middle East tensions ease, for example – or stock valuations will readjust.”
Heavyweights including Nvidia clocked sharp losses, while semiconductor shares, which have had a tremendous run this year on hopes of insatiable AI demand, also whipsawed on Tuesday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said no talks were taking place with Iran and insisted the Strait of Hormuz was open, contradicting Iran’s assertion that the strait remained shut to shipping.
Brent crude futures added 0.2% to hit their highest level in three weeks.
Minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s July meeting later in the day will be parsed for a clearer picture of the central bank’s policy outlook.
Traders currently see at least one 25-basis-point rate hike from the Fed by the end of 2026, according to data compiled by LSEG. The odds of a hike as soon as September, however, have decreased significantly following last week’s tame inflation data.
Robust earnings from several sectors including some AI hyperscalers lifted the S&P 500 and the Dow to record highs earlier this month, but doubts lingered about whether hefty AI spending can yield tangible results soon.
In other stocks, Marvell advanced 12.8% after the chipmaker issued Google a warrant to buy a stake worth about $12.18 billion.
Estee Lauder jumped 13.8% after the cosmetics maker forecast annual profit above Wall Street estimates.
(Reporting by Avinash P and Purvi Agawal in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
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